China Successfully Launches First Solar Research Satellite - Space Agency

China Successfully Launches First Solar Research Satellite - Space Agency

BEIJING (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 14th October, 2021) China has successfully launched its first satellite for solar observation, dubbed Xihe, from the Taiyuan spaceport on Thursday, the China National Space Administration said.

"On October 14, at 06:51 p.m.

(10:51 GMT) the first solar observation satellite Xihe was successfully launched on the Long March 2D carrier rocket from the Taiyuan satellite launch center," the statement read.

The spacecraft is expected to be the first to obtain full H-Alpha pictures of the Sun. The 550-kilogram satellite (1,200 Pounds), designed with a three-year lifespan, will operate on the sun-synchronous orbit.

The spacecraft was named after a mythological Chinese solar goddess who gave birth to ten suns.